Electrical automatic safety hand contact firing-key.



N0. 683,6!6. Patented Oct. I, 1961.

' T. .1. MORIABTY.

ELECTBlCAL AUTOMATIC SAFETY HAND CONTACT FIRING KEY.

(Application filed J an. 17,' 1901.

(No Model.)

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UNITED STATES V PATENT OrFIcE.

THOMAS JOSEPH MORIARTY, OF NElVPORT, RHODE ISLAND, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALFTO JOHN T. REAGAN, OF SAME PLACE.

ELECTRICAL AUTOMATIC SAFETY HAND CONTACT FIRING-KEY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 683,616, dated October1, 1901.

Application filed January 17, 1901. Serial No. 43,602. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, THOMAS JOSEPH Monr- AR'lY, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Newport, in the county of Newport and State of RhodeIsland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in ElectricalAutomatic Safety Hand Contact Firing-Keys,

of which the following is a full and complete specification, such aswill enable those skilled to in the art to which itappertains to makeand use the same.

This invention-relates to automatic safety firing devices or keys foruse in connection with guns and in blasting in mines and wherever suchdevices are required; and the object thereof is to provide an improveddevice of this class which is simple in construction and operation,which is particularly designed for preventing the premature discharge ofa gun or a premature explosion wherever an electrical hand firing-key isused, and which cannot be accidentally operated so as to make contact orcomplete a circuit inadvertently or before the proper time.

The invention is fully disclosed in the following specification, ofwhich the accompanying drawings form a part, in which the separate partsof my improvement are designated by the same reference characters in 0each of the views, and in which Figure 1 is a side view of myi ingdevice, and Fig. 2 a longitudinal section thereof.

In the practice of my invention I provide a 5 device of the classspecified which is cylindrical in cross-section and comprising twoseparate similar parts 5, which are fiat on their adjacent sides andpreferably semicircular on their opposite sides and which are preferablysmaller at one end than at the other and connected by a metal band 6.

The separate parts 5 of the firing device are provided at the endsopposite the band 6 with a metal cap 7,and the caps 7 are similar informto a cross-section of the pieces 5, and one of the said caps isprovided in itsinner face with a segmental notch or recess 8, whichregisters with a corresponding groove or slot 9 in said part 5, and theother cap is provided with a tubular casing 10 at the inner face, in

mproved firwhich is mounted a spring-operated plug 11, having apin12,which passes inwardly through said tubular casing and is provided atits inner end with a head 13, andmounted on the pin 12 is a spring 14,which operates to force the plug 11 outwardly, as shown in the drawings.At the inner end of the tubular casing 10 each of the parts 5 of thedevice is provided with a segmental countersunk casing 15, and when theplug 11 is in its outermost position the head 13 of the pin 12 fitsbetween these casings, each of which is provided with a segmentalinwardly-directed flange 16, between which the head 13 of the pin 12fits when the said plug is in its outermost position, and the head ofsaid pin operates in this position of the parts tohold the ends of theparts 5 of the device opposite the band 6 separated, as shown in thedrawings.

Each of the parts 5 is provided in its inner 7o face with acontact-piece17, which is screwed thereinto, and into which is screwed from theoutside a screw 19, and wires or conductors 20 are passed into the endsof the parts 5 through the band 6 and into the contact devices 17, wherethey are held by the screws 19, and in practice the wires or conductors20 are connected with the firing mechanism of the gun, mine, or otherblast in the usual manner, and whenever it is desired to dis- 8o chargethe gun or explode the blast the firing key or device is held in thehand and the plug 11 is forced inwardly, and the separate ends of theparts 5 are pressed together, so that the contact devices 17 will beconnected, and the circuit through the wires or conductors 20 will beestablished in the usual manner, and the gun will be discharged or theblast fired, as will be readily understood.

The separate parts 5 of the device are held 0 in the band 6 by frictionor in any desired manner, and said parts may be made of any desiredinsulating material.

This device is simple in construction and operation and alsocomparatively inexpen- 5 sive, and by means thereof any accidentalcontact cannot be made to discharge prematurely a gun or blast,

My invention is not limited to the exact construction herein shown anddescribed, and

I reserve the right to make all such alterations therein as fairly comewithin the scope of the invention.

Having fully described my invention, what Iclaim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A firing device or key, consisting of two parts 5 connected at oneend, and separated at the other by a spring-operated plug which operatesnormally to hold said ends apart, said ends of the parts in which theplug is located being adapted to be forced together when the plug isforced inwardly, the parts of the device being also provided withcontact devices secured in their inner faces, and conductors which passinwardly through the connected ends of the separate parts and areconnected with the said contact devices, substantially as shown anddescribed.

2. A firing device or key, comprising two separate, similar partsconnected at one end,

the inner faces of said parts being'flat, and the outer surfaces convex,the ends of said parts opposite the connected ends being held apart by aspring-operated plug which is adapted to be forced inwardly, said endsbeing adapted to be pressed together when said plug is forced inwardly,the said parts being also provided in their inner faces, with contactdevices, and wires passing into said parts through the connected endsthereof, said Wires being connected with said contact devices,substantially as shown and described.

3. A firing device or key consisting of two parts connected at one end,and normally separated at the other end, contact devices connected withsaid parts and provided with circuit wires, said separated ends beingadapted to be pressed together, and a springoperated device for holdingsaid ends in a separated position, said device being adapted to bemanipulated so as to allow the separated ends of the separate parts tobe pressed together, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed myname, in presence of the subscribing witnesses, this 14th day ofJanuary, 1901.

THOMAS JOSEPH MORIARTY.

